Exercise 1.

Reading Comprehension Task

Instructions: Compare and contrast each pair of terms related to Aristotle’s Nichomachean
Ethics as discussed in this section.
1. Virtue – Vice
- Living a virtuous life makes eudaimonia possible. Arête is a Greek term and defined
as excellence of any kind and it can also mean “moral virtue. virtue is defined as
what makes one function well. There are two types of virtue: moral and intellectual.
We should evaluate ourselves to see if we truly understand what it means to
function well in order to live a happy and good life. Virtues provide us with the
intellectual and moral tools we need to perform well in society and live a balanced
existence. That is why, before gaining the good life or happiness we desire, we must
first live a virtuous life. Any excess or deficiency in how one lives and acts ruins a
virtue. This excess or deficiency may be the definition of vice. If virtue is a good
habit, then vice of course is a bad habit. Vice is defined as a moral failing and can be
described as either the excess of something or the deficiency of something.